Cabling and Bracing
The purpose of cabling/bracing is to help preserve a tree and protect its surroundings.
Cabling
Trees that grow like a “V” are called double leader trees and trees that grow like a “Y” have a co-dominant stem. Both types of trees have structural weaknesses when compared to a single leader tree or a tree with a single dominant stem. Typically, each leader grows away from each other and is weight heavy on the side the leader is leaning towards. This makes them more prone to fail than a single leader tree. To help prevent failure, we can add a support cable in the upper canopy of these trees. We usually add a cable in conjunction with reducing weight in the direction of the lean of one or both leaders.
Bracing
There are several bracing techniques we use. Arbor bolts are installed through the trunk of a double leader tree that has begun to split. Small, medium sized trees that have uprooted can often be saved by up righting them and installing a heavy duty wire/stake system. If a property does not have the proper space for a wire/stake system, we can build customized “crutches” for these trees to lean on.